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Overnight Stop Between Dordogne and St Remy

I am trying to flush out a draft three week itinerary to France for next September (40th Anniversary). I have a substantial Delta ecredit that I need to use before the end of this month so need to determine how many days/night total I need so I can book the flights. Looking for suggestions of where to overnight between Sarlat area and St. Remy. The main reason is I really am not a road trip person (hate long drives really) and try to keep drive times ideally between three - four hours, with around five being my max. I did see an old post from FastEddie (seven years ago) that the drive can be done in five hours (Google says 5 1/2, but via Michelin puts the the time at 6.5 - 7 hrs.

If seven hours is more likely, would like overnight suggestions with easy in/out with a car, other than Carcassone as that really does not interest me.

Thank you!

Posted by
2511 posts

I suppose that Viamichelin gives you the route without highways and tolls, probably via Rodez, while Google gives you the one with highways and tolls via Toulouse and Montpellier.

The two versions are not comparable.

Are you prepared to take local roads and pass through villages like places rather than driving at 130km/h on highways and stopping for a break at gas stations and rest areas?

Posted by
431 posts

Honestly, I prefer the highway. The less time on the road the better for me.

Posted by
1880 posts

We did something similar (but opposite direction) in September a few years ago. Suggested route: Dordogne - lunch break St. Cirq la Popie, Cordes-sur-Ciel, or Albi - overnight Carcassonne Hotel Donjon - lunch break Parc Naturel Camargue (see huge flock of flamingoes) - St. Remy. We spent two nights at Carcassonne because we wanted to do a daytrip to some of the ruined Cathar castles. Provence was VERY warm (low 90s), even in late September.

Posted by
1534 posts

Cynthia,
Another Hotel Donjon alum here! We have stayed there both times we visited Carcassonne, in 2001 and 2017. I love its quirkiness and oddball rooms and bathrooms! We have also been lucky enough to have rooms with views of the castle. A funky charmer!

Posted by
431 posts

Thank you for the suggestions and even including lunch stops! I especially like the idea of a stop at the Camargue for the flamingos.

I will do some follow up and research the ideas.

Thank you!

Posted by
1880 posts

Is your heart set on St. Remy? If not, we stayed at the place listed below. There were two lovely reasonably priced restaurants in the nearby (walkable from the B. and B) small village. Easy access from the village to most of the other popular tourist villages.

https://www.bastide-saint-didier.com/

Posted by
431 posts

Cynthia - no we are not set on St. Remy, just a convenient location to the sites we are interested in. I must say, it does look quite lovely and meets my two requirements of AC and pool, especially since you mentioned that it was 90F when you were there in September, those have become nonnegotiable! I also like the idea of a communal kitchen and laundry. I am definately putting it on my short list.

Posted by
2511 posts

If you take the highways via Toulouse and Montpellier there are some nice places when you arrive along the Mediterranean coast (from Narbonne) if you like the seaside atmosphere. Like for example Gruissan or Sète

https://www.gruissan-mediterranee.com/en/discover/must-see-places-in-gruissan/the-village-of-gruissan/

https://en.tourisme-sete.com/the-must-sees-of-sete.html?origine=switchLangue

The pink flamingos in the Camargue are a little further away (from Sarlat at least 5 hours drive without breaks)

Posted by
682 posts

I’ve done this drive. My opinion is that there’s so much to see and do in Provence and the Dordogne that an overnight in between is not worth it. You would end up turning a 6 hour drive into 8 hours of driving plus 2-3 hours of travel transition for not all that much payoff. This especially true if you rent a house/gite/airbnb/etc in Provence that has a typical 4pm check in. On day 2 you will get there at lunchtime and have to figure out how to kill 4 hours with all your bags (and since you don’t know what has secure parking you may struggle to plan and use that time wisely). In addition you may run into minimum night requirements on the place you want in Provence that would benefit from the extra night.

So, my 2 recommendations would be to have lunch at the incredible highway rest stop on the canal du midi https://maps.app.goo.gl/gcw6UJbhJyHHv9aj8?g_st=ic

This is about 3 hours away. So you can leave here recharged by 2pm and then either drive the rest of the way or go to pont du gard which has a secure parking lot, is on the way, and will save you a trip out west later in the week.

When we (me, wife, kids 5 and 9) did this in 2015 we spent an entire day in western Provence that would have been better spent elsewhere so I wish we had visited pont du gard on the way in.

Have fun!

Posted by
431 posts

JoLui – thank you for the ideas. Gruissan looks beautiful.

Matt – you make some good points and that is quite the rest stop! Nothing like that at home.

Thank you all for your input. I have about 12 more days to figure everything out. I truly appreciate your insight. Right now I am leaning towards biting the bullet and driving through. Will do a little more research.

Thank you!

Posted by
1880 posts

Our evenings in Carcassonne, after the day-trippers left, felt magical. That and evenings in St. Didier and Sarlat were the highlights of our September trip. The villages of Provence are charming but similar, while Carcassonne is a unique experience. Just saying....

Posted by
431 posts

Oh Cynthia, you're really not making this easy for me! :p)